Thanks for the previous info on 3pt backhoes. While visiting family over the Holiday I went and looked at some SMC, Bradco, and Woods backhoes. The Bradco was much more heavy duty than the SMC with larger pins etc. The Woods seemed even a bit heavier than the Bradco, but it had the chain type of swing that the SMC had. The Bradco used hydralics to swing.I'm really in a quandry over what to do. I have a 61 MF35 Deluxe that has just been rebuilt and restored. We purchased it to use on our farm. We are also a general contractor that currently subs out all of our dirt work. Where we build it is all sand, easy to dig. I would at least like to be able to do our utility trenching to save as much time as money. Our sewer trenches are usually less than 50', and 42" at the deep end. Our power trenches are about the same length, 2' deep x 2' wide. We just purchased an original MF loader for our tractor. I don't think it would be realistic for us to use a 3pt hoe and the loader to dig our 24" foundation holes, but it seems that the trenching and possibly backfilling the foundations might be possible and realistic. Any advice and thoughts would be greatly appreciated, especially as to the Woods being a good 3pt backhoe or not. We were quoted a retail price of $5,900 for the 7.5' model with the auxillary pump. We've also considered purchasing something new, like a Kubota B21 with a loader and backhoe, small and easily transportable but able to do everything, including our foundation holes. I don't want to tear up the MF35 by pressing it into duty that it isn't suited for. There doesn't appear to be a subframe available for the MF35 from Woods, so it would have to be strictly mounted on the 3pt. How much wear and tear does that put on the tractor? Thanks in advance.
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